The California Naturalist Handbook

by Greg de Nevers, Deborah Stanger Edelman, Adina Merenlender

Overview

The California Naturalist Handbook provides a fun, science-based introduction to California’s natural history with an emphasis on observation, discovery, communication, stewardship and conservation. It is a hands-on guide to learning about the natural environment of California. Subjects covered include California natural history and geology, native plants and animals, California’s freshwater resources and ecosystems, forest and rangeland resources, conservation biology, and the effects of global warming on California’s natural communities. The Handbook also discusses how to create and use a field notebook, natural resource interpretation, citizen science, and collaborative conservation and serves as the primary text for the California Naturalist Program.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780520274808
Publisher:	University of California Press
Publication date:	02/15/2013
Edition description:	First Edition
Pages:	280
Sales rank:	111,450
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Greg de Nevers is a botanist and naturalist with years of experience observing nature and sharing it with others through writing and teaching. Currently, he is a high school science teacher.

Deborah Stanger Edelman co-founded the California Naturalist Program and has over 20 years experience developing resource conservation and education programs for organizations including the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy, the Mendocino County Resource Conservation District and the University of California Cooperative Extension. She has an M.S. in Ecology from the University of California at Davis.

Adina Merenlender is a Cooperative Extension Specialist at University of California, Berkeley and is an internationally recognized conservation biologist working on environmental problem-solving at the landscape-scale. She has published over 75 scientific research articles focused on relationships between land use and biodiversity and is the Director of the UC California Naturalist program. More information at http://ucanr.org/sites/merenlender

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements
Preface

Chapter 1: Introduction to California Natural History and the World of Naturalists
California’s Biodiversity
The Biodiversity Crisis
A Brief History of Natural History and Naturalists
Traditional Ecological Knowledge
Why Be A Naturalist?
Field Notebook: An Essential Record for Every Naturalist
Field notebook
Field journal
General journaling practices
The Language of Naturalists
Linneaus’s classification system
Geographic range
Getting Out and About
Explore!

Chapter 2: Geology, Climate, and Soils
Earth’s Formation and Plate Tectonics
Shaping California
Rocks in California
California’s Climate
Diversity of California Microclimates
Soil Structure and Nutrients
Nutrient Cycling
Decomposition
Mycorrhizal Relationships
Mining in California
Explore!

Chapter 3: Water
Scaling Water: From Molecules to Our Environment
The Water Cycle
Stream Processes
Biological Inputs
Chemical Inputs
Physical Inputs
The Path of a River
Estuaries
Intertidal zone
Wetlands
California’s Lakes
California’s Freshwater Fish
Rivers Today
California Water Management and Law
Challenges for the Future: Population Growth and Climate Change
Explore!

Chapter 4: Plants
Lifestyles of Rich and Famous Plants
Parts of a Plant
Pollination
Seed Dispersal
Plant Communities of California
Plants and People
Native American Plant Uses
California’s Plant Communities and Climate Change
Explore!

Chapter 5: Forest, Woodland, Range Resources and Management
History of California Forests and Their Management
Forest Dynamics
California Forests and Wildfire
Fragmentation of Forests
Carbon Sequestration
Rangelands and Livestock Grazing Management
Conservation Biology
Explore!

Chapter 6: Animals
Evolutionary Groups
Invertebrates
Vertebrates
Fishes
Amphibians
Dinosaurs
Birds
Lizards and Snakes
Mammals
Human Activity and Domestic and Introduced Animals
Explore!

Chapter 7: Energy and Global Environmental Challenges
Forms and Sources of Energy
Forms of Energy
Sources of Energy
The Energetic Basis of Life
Energy Use by People
Global Environmental Challenges
Climate Change
Ozone Depletion
Dead Zones, Fertilizers and Manure Management
Agricultural Issues
Agriculture and Carbon Sequestration
Air Quality
Solid Waste
Population
Explore!

Chapter 8: Interpretation, Communication, and Citizen Science Interpretation: Why, what and how
The Interpretive Talk
A Naturalist Walk
Communication
Communication in the Community
Collaborative Conservation
Citizen Science
Explore!

Glossary